Canseco, Gallego in funds battle

By Kyle Campbell, By Alex Yap, By Summer Ballentine

Updated 11:58 pm, Monday, October 15, 2012

Photo: JOHN ALBRIGHT, For The Express-News

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Congressman Francisco "Quico" Canseco (left) and State Representative Pete Gallego (Right) have a laugh on stage at the conclusion of a Spanish-language debate between Congressman Francisco "Quico" Canseco (R-San Antonio) and State Representative Pete Gallego (D-Alpine) on Tuesday, September 25, 2012 at Palo Alto College in San Antonio Texas.
John Albright / Special to the Express-News. less

Congressman Francisco "Quico" Canseco (left) and State Representative Pete Gallego (Right) have a laugh on stage at the conclusion of a Spanish-language debate between Congressman Francisco "Quico" Canseco ... more

Photo: JOHN ALBRIGHT, For The Express-News

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State Rep. Pete Gallego, D-Alpine, speaks during a Spanish-language debate against Republican U.S. Rep. Francisco "Quico" Canseco on Tuesday, Sept. 25, 2012 at Palo Alto College in San Antonio, Texas. (AP Photo/The San Antonio Express-News, John Albright) RUMBO DE SAN ANTONIO OUT; NO SALES

State Rep. Pete Gallego, D-Alpine, speaks during a Spanish-language debate against Republican U.S. Rep. Francisco "Quico" Canseco on Tuesday, Sept. 25, 2012 at Palo Alto College in San Antonio, Texas. (AP

Republican U.S. Rep. Francisco "Quico" Canseco speaks during a Spanish-language debate against State Rep. Pete Gallego (D-Alpine) on Tuesday, Sept. 25, 2012 at Palo Alto College in San Antonio, Texas. (AP Photo/The San Antonio Express-News, John Albright) RUMBO DE SAN ANTONIO OUT; NO SALES

Republican U.S. Rep. Francisco "Quico" Canseco speaks during a Spanish-language debate against State Rep. Pete Gallego (D-Alpine) on Tuesday, Sept. 25, 2012 at Palo Alto College in San Antonio, Texas. (AP

Canseco took the edge with about $546,000, spokesman Scott Yeldell said. Gallego's campaign brought in $507,910. Neither campaign's full report was immediately available.

Though Gallego was able to add more than $100,000 to his cash-on-hand total, bring it from $7,050 to $114,876, he still was well behind Canseco, whose war chest sits at just less than $1.1 million, according to his campaign.

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“I look at this race as being less about money and more about geography,” Wasserman said.

Among the 10 largest in the country, District 23 stretches from San Antonio to El Paso, encompassing most of the border. Wasserman said this race ultimately won't come down to who can spend more, but rather who can better relate to the diverse population of the district.

Wasserman said Gallego, a state representative from Alpine, also benefits from large contributions from independent expenditure groups. He received more than $1 million each from environmental political action committees and the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee, or DCCC, which sees this as a potentially winnable seat. The Cook Report rates District 23 as a tossup.

“It's a race that's attracted a lot of national attention,” Wasserman said. “The League of Conservation Voters started to get interested in this race in the primary. They've put a lot of money into (Gallego's campaign), and they're in it for the long haul.”

Gallego has received more than $2.8 million from political action committees — half of which is from the DCCC — compared with less than $1.7 million for San Antonio's Canseco, $1.3 million coming from the National Republican Congressional Committee.

In the Senate race to replace the retiring Kay Bailey Hutchison, R-Dallas, Sadler stepped up fundraising last quarter, but Cruz remains millions of dollars ahead. Political scientists doubt whether Sadler's recent jolt in donations will make much difference.

Sadler raised $358,734 in the past quarter, more than twice his total contributions of $132,987 as of July 11.

That's dwarfed by the roughly $3.5 million that Cruz raised last quarter. Cruz has raised about $11.8 million overall, compared with Sadler's $497,391.

The Cruz campaign attributes the huge gap in donations to Texans' support of the Republican candidate's message of economic conservatism, although political scientists also said donors are reluctant to give money to Democratic candidates in a solid red state for fear of wasting money on fruitless campaigns.

“Ted Cruz is committed to cutting spending, reducing our deficit and restoring the principles of limited government our nation was founded upon,” campaign spokesman James Bernsen said in a statement. “We won't do that unless we elect strong fiscal conservatives to the U.S. Senate.”

Even the Texas Democratic Party did not donate the full $2,600 allowable to Sadler's campaign, choosing a more cautious $677, according to August FEC data.

“Texas people assume Democrats can't win statewide,” said Bill Brannon, executive director of the Texas Democratic Party. “But there are a lot of Democrats in Texas and a lot of Democratic donors in Texas. When we show them something, they'll be there for us.”

Sadler's lagging war chest illustrates a loss of hope among some Democrats over their prospects against Republican powerhouses in the state, Southern Methodist University political scientist Cal Jillson said.

“What this suggests is that Democrats in Texas are so skeptical about their own candidate's prospects of winning that they don't give money,” Jillson said. “It's a big problem for Democrats running for office statewide over the last decade or so.”

And without significant money, there's little hope that Sadler will be able to bolster enough support for a Nov. 6 victory, Jillson said.

Dollar amounts notwithstanding, Sadler maintained a brave face.

“These numbers will allow me to get our message out to more Texas voters,” Sadler said in a statement. “We are seeing the kind of fundraising momentum that gives us a chance to talk to Texans prior to the election.”